Only Time Can Tell
by LLTogetherForever
Summary: Written for Makita and the 2007 LL Reunited And It Feels So Good ficathon. A TON of thanks to my beta, KATIE, for doing just as much work on this story as I did. Read, enjoy, and review. TITLE SHORTENED


The whole town knew that Lorelai had ended her marriage to Chris. Babette, Miss Patty, Taylor, Andrew, and Gypsy--they all knew. It was the major topic of town gossip for the first couple of weeks, and then died down a little once they saw Lorelai getting back to her normal routine after a month or so. It now was late April and for the most part, Lorelai seemed to have bounced back better from her divorce with Chris than she had from her broken engagement to Luke. She still wasn't her full, bubbly self still, but she was confident again, more herself than the townies had seen her be in over a year.

Everything was going well in Lorelai's life a few months ago, until Christopher found the letter Lorelai wrote for Luke's custody battle. They fought, and eventually decided to end their marriage. Lorelai was stunned when Chris admitted he was jealous of Luke, and couldn't handle her still having contact with him. That was what really sealed the deal for her. He moved out the next day, and they have not seen each other since their divorce was final.

But Luke. Luke was still dwelling over the fact that the man Lorelai left _him _for was now out of her life for good. He had a somewhat, "told you so," attitude. They avoided each other still; she didn't go into the diner still. Sure, they bumped into each other here and there. There was an occasional "Hello, How are you? Goodbye" exchange muttered, but not once had they sat down and talked about everything that happened between them. Luke never asked about Chris, and Lorelai didn't say anything about Anna or April.

Lorelai didn't _want_ to see Luke. Lorelai wouldn't be able to take it, knowing that he wasn't even her best friend and confidant anymore, not to mention that he wasn't her romantic partner, either. Both she and Luke knew it was impossible not to see each other, but they tried their hardest. Taylor suggested Luke move, like he promised he would if they broke up after Lorelai and Luke started dating for the first time. Luke unpleasantly disagreed, and that was the end of Taylor's input on the matter. Babette thought they should go and have it out at a town meeting. This time, Lorelai pleasantly disagreed. Miss Patty offered her dance studio for make-up sex, Lorelai couldn't believe it and she called Luke herself and told him to tell Patty no. Miss Patty told him that the offer was always standing, but if she had her senior aerobics class in at their desired time, they'd have to wait until dear old Ira got from one side of the studio to the other. She warned that it could be awhile. Gypsy offered free oil changes for each of them if they'd get back together. Actually, her choices of words were, "the crap and kiss already," but they got the picture. After this suggestion, Luke threw down his towel and ran outside of the diner to scream out to any passerby that he was sick of this nonsense and wanted everyone to leave him alone. One by one, the people in the diner scattered out, leaving Luke to deal with Kirk at the counter. After a fierce look from Luke, Kirk ran out of the diner to leave Luke alone with his thoughts.

That day, Luke began to think, marked the rebirth of their 'relationship,' whatever their 'relationship' consisted of these days. Lorelai _did _call him, right? She asked for _his _help, didn't she? Of course, it was nothing big, but something that was binding the two of them together. But then, Luke thought, she called him to _get out _of the binding. Maybe that's all she really wanted. As Luke pondered behind the counter, he barely noticed when Rory Gilmore walked in and took a seat in front of him.

"Hey, Luke. How are you?" she asked sweetly.

"Uh, fine, Rory. What about you?" he asked.

"Oh, I'm great. Mom's good too. Not that I thought you were wondering or anyth--I'll stop." Rory looked around the diner, and seeing it was empty, asked Luke why.

"Eh, those damn people. Taylor and Patty and Gypsy," he muttered under his breath. Rory slightly nodded her head, used to Luke's mini-rants. She noticed that he didn't appear interested in giving her anymore information, and she wasn't going to prod him for it. "Coffee?" he asked, diverting the topic.

"Sure, sure. Coffee's great," she replied. He poured her a mug and set it down in front of her. She took a sip and then spoke, "You're probably wondering why I'm here."

"Nah, why can't you just come around for coffee?"

"Well, I could, but neither of us has been around here lately. I'm sure you've noticed," Rory reasoned.

"Oh, really? I hadn't even noticed that Lorelai wasn't here," Luke replied. Of course, it was a big, fat, juicy lie, and Rory knew it. Every second of every day that she wasn't there to kiss him over the counter and down cup after cup of his coffee, he noticed. He noticed when she didn't bug him about the menu, or his apron. He noticed when she wasn't there to leave her usual tip, even after he told her you weren't supposed to tip the proprietor. She didn't care. She tipped him anyways; up until they started their relationship, then she tipped him in other ways. He smiled fondly at the memories.

"Did you hear that she and Dad broke up?" Rory asked, breaking his reflective moment. He nodded in response to her question. "I probably shouldn't be telling you this, I doubt you really want to know, but I almost feel like you should know. He found the letter she wrote you, you know, for April? Apparently, there was some pretty good stuff in there. So, he found the letter, read it, and the two of them had this huge fight. He left the house, a few days after grandpa got sick, Mom called me at Yale to tell me that she and Dad were getting a divorce. He accused her of still loving you, Luke. And you know what? She does, she might not admit to it, but of _course_ she does. He told her he didn't want to be her second choice. He wanted to be her first choice, but he knew he never would be. So she told him to leave, and he did." Rory searched Luke's face. It was blank.

"I didn't know the whole story," he explained sadly. "I feel terrible."

"What? Why? You feel terrible because she didn't love him enough to stay with her husband, my father? That's her fault, not yours," Rory questioned.

"I don't know, Rory. I really don't know." Luke looked out the window. "I miss her, I know that, I want her back in the diner, I want her back in my life," he said, catching Rory off guard with his openness. "Maybe I should just talk to her."

"I think you should. Should I tell her you want to talk? Or do you want to," Rory asked.

"I can tell her. I'll call her in a little bit," Luke answered. Rory agreed and stood up to leave. "Wait, no, you tell her, Rory. Then she won't feel pressured into talking to me. If I call, she'll have to say _something_. I don't want her to feel pressured."

"Okay, Luke."

"Bye, Rory," Luke smiled. That girl was something else.

Xx

Rory left the diner happy, believing that Luke and Lorelai would be able to start fresh again. Rory never doubted that he loved her mother, though, and she knew for a fact that Lorelai was madly in love with Luke. It was just a matter of time.

She pulled into the Gilmore driveway a minute later. Lorelai was outside getting the mail as Rory slammed her car door shut and sprinted over to her. Lorelai handed her a letter.

"Junk," she said. She handed Rory three more, "More junk." She was left with one piece of mail in her hands. Rory took it from her and looked at it. "From the Lawyer of Christopher Hayden," it read. She looked back at her mom, who was smiling.

"Mom, can we talk for a sec?" Rory asked.

"Sure! Let's talk. We haven't talked in a while," Lorelai stated.

"Okay. Well, I went into Luke's today." Rory looked at Lorelai, looking for some kind of reaction. She was still smiling.

"And?" She asked impatiently.

"He wants to see you. Or talk to you. I'm not sure exactly how he wants to talk to you, but I'm assuming he'd want to see you too." Lorelai was still smiling.

"That's a good thing, right? It's good, isn't it?" Lorelai asked. "I mean, I've missed him, and it would be nice to talk again."

"Well, yeah, it's great because you two would be talking again, exactly. It's so strange not having you in the diner every second of the day, talking with him. I know he loves you, and wants you to be happy, even if it means you're not with him, and he feels awful about you and Dad ending and I think he just wants to reconnect," Rory explained. Lorelai's smile left her face and was replaced by a more thoughtful gaze.

"But it means we'd get to talk. That's good. That's always good. We need to talk, about things, about a lot of things," Lorelai answered. "This is good. It's a good thing."

"Okay," Rory replied. "Are you going to call him?"

"Later. It's mother-daughter time. What do you want to do?" Lorelai asked Rory.

"Well, I need to stop at Doose's, but after that, anything until tonight, I'll have to get back to Yale, early class tomorrow and all. What about some shopping?"

"Call me crazy, but I don't really feel like shopping today."

"Crazy."

"What do you need to get at Doose's?" Lorelai asked, ignoring her daughter's remark. She began to walk towards the house, Rory right on her heels.

"Just some laundry soap and dish detergent. Paris's freaking out because the place we usually get ours from raised their prices," Rory explained.

"You're going to Taylor's to get lower prices?" Lorelai asked. "The man will charge $2.99 for a bar of soap. Believe me. The other day, I needed some, and asked Taylor where the cheapest ones were. He handed me a box with a $2.99 sticker on it. I ripped off the part with the 2 on it and told him I'd take it."

"He gave it to you for 99 cents?" Rory asked, incredulous. "He's not one to lower his prices, either."

"Sort of. He wasn't the one who rang me up, so the kid who rung it up gave it to me for 99 cents," explained proudly.

"Sneaky," Rory said as they entered their living room. Rory grabbed her purse while Lorelai ran upstairs to get hers. She bounded back down half a minute later, and they were off. They drove to Doose's and parked outside.

"Hey, you can do this yourself, right? I think 'm going to go over and talk to Luke." Lorelai asked. Rory smiled.

"Sure I can. Meet you back here in half an hour? While I'm here, I might as well pick up some other stuff."

"Okay," Lorelai agreed. She kissed her daughter's cheek and sauntered off to Luke's. When she arrived outside the diner, it was completely empty. She saw Luke behind the counter making a fresh pot of coffee. Lorelai was shocked to find herself recalling how good he looks when he's pour coffee, in the flannel that shows off his broad shoulders and toned chest... She suddenly realized what she'd allowed her thoughts to drift to and shook herself of it, walking in. She took a deep breath, taking in the long forgotten smell of the diner. Luke didn't turn around when he heard the little bell ring over the door when it was opened and closed. He just knew right away that it was her, maybe it was her footsteps on the tiles, or maybe it was just instinct.

"Lorelai," he spoke. It felt good to say her name again.

"Luke."

"How are you?" Luke asked.

"I'm good. What about you?"

"I've been better. I've had you," Luke stated bluntly. He wanted to get it out on the table right away. He loves her, he wants her, and he _needs _her. And he wants her to know it.

"Wow," Lorelai was taken aback. "I- I don't know what to say, Luke."

"How about yes, when I ask you to come out to dinner with me tonight. Not a date or anything, just to talk. About us, we need to talk, I think. You can't keep avoiding the diner forever, and if we keep going on like this, nothing will ever change. We could go sit in the gazebo if you wanted. But I don't know how you feel about talking in public where anyone could just walk up and listen in. Well, it's not like they don't know anyways; I've had people bothering me all day about you," He paused, "Do you want coffee?"

"That'd be great," she replied, smiling. "Thanks."

"Meet me back here at 7?" he asked.

"Which means…?"

"Seven-fifteen. Got it," Luke replied.

"You remembered! Good job." He smiled and set a mug of the freshly made coffee in front of her. "How's the diner going?" she inquired.

"Great, except for today. I think I scared everyone away."

"How'd you manage that?" Lorelai asked before sipping the coffee.

"I yelled. About you, actually. Well, sort of about you. They were bothering me, about you, and I screamed at them to leave me alone, about you." Luke said quickly.

"I see." Lorelai looked down at the mug. "I have to get back to Rory, but thanks for the coffee. I may be seeing you around here a little more often."

Luke smiled. She smiled back, and extended out her hand. He chuckled and shook it. "See ya," he said. Lorelai nodded back at him, a sparkle in her eye that wasn't present earlier in the conversation. "See ya," she said back to him. It was a verbal agreement to meet again. A simple verbal agreement that left both of them ecstatic.

Xx

Lorelai met Rory back at Doose's right as she was being rung up. Among her detergent and soap, there was a package of lip gloss and a box of tissues. Her purchases were put in a bag, and the two girls left.

"So, what did he say?" Rory asked nervously.

"Well, he wants us to talk, as do I, and we're going out for dinner tonight. Not as a date, he was quick to announce, but it'll be nice to sit down and really talk again. Even when we were engaged, we never had that," Lorelai said. They got into the car and buckled their seatbelts.

"Yeah, that should be nice. I'll be back tomorrow for Friday Night Dinner around 6. I thought we could go together?"

"Gah. I do not want to face Emily Gilmore." Rory gave her a pointed look. She sighed, "Sure, sure, sure."

"Alright. So, movie?" Rory asked.

"Sounds like a plan," Lorelai said as she turned the wheel in the direction of the Black, White and Red Theater.

Two hours later, the girls emerged, laughing, from the doors of the bookstore. "I can't believe you did that!" Rory exclaimed.

"Well, someone had to before her face was completely sucked off!"

"I never would have thought to dump Coke on his head though. Kirk loves Coke! I would have figured to dump something he wouldn't like. He just sat there and licked his own self clean! Maybe he and Cat Kirk got a little switch-a-roo," Rory offered her opinion while laughing her head off. The two linked arms and walked to the car.

"I think Lulu was relieved. I wonder if she ever got to breathe under there!" Lorelai laughed. They both got in to the jeep and laughed about it all the way home. When they pulled into the driveway, Rory hopped out and hugged Lorelai before getting into her car.

"Call me and tell me _everything_," Rory demanded. Lorelai winked at her, and Rory drove off. Lorelai retreated to the house by herself. Once inside, she sat herself on the couch and turned on the TV to a Mary Tyler Moore rerun. She was a deep in the episode when the phone rang.

"Hello?"

"It's your mother," Emily said.

"And it's my lucky day," Lorelai said sarcastically.

"Funny you mention it; dinner is going to be changed. You father and I have plans for tomorrow and we're going to be out of town Saturday. Dinner will be held tonight at 7 o'clock," Emily explained.

"Well, Mom, I have plans tonight, and Rory already went back to Yale."

"You can get out of whatever engagement you have planned, and Rory's close enough to here. I'll call her and tell her of the change. We'll see you girls at 7," Emily said sternly. She hung up the phone without saying goodbye. Lorelai quickly dialed Rory's number.

"Did she call yet?" Lorelai asked.

"And hello to you too. Did who call?" Rory asked back.

"Mom. Did she call you?"

"No, nothing. Why?" Rory asked.

"Just don't answer if she calls. Or pick up and hang up really fast," Lorelai told her daughter. "Don't give her a chance to talk to you. I have to call her back." Lorelai hung up the phone and called Emily back.

"Hello?" Emily said.

"It's your daughter. And I'm not canceling my _engagement_ tonight, and Rory's not leaving New Haven, and you're going to have to deal with it," Lorelai said quickly, not giving Emily a chance to chime in with her thoughts until she was finished.

"And why is that, Lorelai?"

"Because I'm going out tonight."

"Oh, really? With who? If I recall correctly you're newly divorced, Lorelai. I certainly hope that you're not throwing yourself into yet another doomed relationship."

Lorelai rolled her eyes, "With Luke, Mom. Remember him? Flannel shirt, baseball hat? We're going out tonight. And I'm not canceling it, and Rory's staying in New Haven tonight, because that was _her_ plan for the night," Lorelai stated.

"You have an agreement. Dinner on Fridays. And what in the world are you doing, going out with that diner man again? I thought you two were done. You _were_ done. Because you were married to Christopher. Remember him? The father of your only child? What are you doing, getting back together with _Luke_? He isn't good enough for you, Lorelai!" Emily yelled through the phone in one big breath. Lorelai was silent, but then spoke up.

"My life is none of your business! Christopher and I are finished. And just so you know, Luke and I aren't getting back together. We're going out to talk. He used to be one of my dearest friends, Mom, and I need that back. I won't have you ruining this for me. You ruined it once. Don't even think about ruining it again. You've done enough. It's not fair to me, Mom. It's not fair to me for you to imply that I have to run my life according to your rules. Actually, it's not important what you _think;_ I'm not going to run my life according to your crazy rules. Because I'm not, I'm done trying to please you. If I want to go out with my best friend and talk to him, about anything I wish to talk to him about, then that's my decision. Not yours. Not yours and not Dad's. Mine, Mom. Mine," Lorelai yelled back.

"You know, Lorelai, this is your entire fault, the fact that you're alone, and that you can't even talk to me. If you wouldn't have defied our rules when you were younger, you never would have gotten pregnant. You never would have moved out. You never would have had this affair with Luke. You never would have broken Christopher's heart over and over again. The two of you would have grown up, and once you were of sufficient age, you have married. And _then _you would have children. Don't make this into something that's my fault, Lorelai."

"Mom! Seriously? This again? Rory's the best damn thing that's ever happened to me. She liberated me. Rory released me from the grip I'd been trying to escape since I could walk. And I'd thank Christopher every day of my life for helping me get her. Sure, I agree, sixteen's young. I agree that everything would have been the way _you_ planned it if I didn't have Rory. But I did. And I'm happy, Mom. And I have _no _idea why you think this has anything to do with you. My life is mine, and what I plan to do with it is my decision," Lorelai screamed. Her throat started to hurt.

"You and Christopher _belonged_ together, Lorelai! You've ruined every relationship you've ever been in. You ended it with Rory's teacher, what was his name, Max? You ended it with Jason Stiles. You ended it with Christopher numerous times. You ruined your relationship with Luke. Why do you do it, Lorelai? Why do you put yourself through that? Just call up Christopher and tell him you made a bad choice, and he'll come running. You know he will!"

"Shut up, Mother! I don't love Chris, I love Luke!" Lorelai exclaimed. She hung up the phone, reeling from what she just admitted. Exasperated, she sunk into the chair in front of the desk. It rang less than a second later. She picked it up.

"Leave me _alone!_ I don't want to hear your opinion anymore!" She yelled.

"Mom?"

"Rory? Oh, sweetie, I'm sorry. I thought you were Emily," Lorelai said, saying 'Emily' with a repulsed tone.

"Ouch. What happened?"

"She thought she knew what was best for me, again. Sometimes it seems like she needs to get her own life," Lorelai said angrily.

"I see. Are you okay? You seem a little, uh, distracted," Rory said.

"No, no. Not distracted. Mad. I'm really, really mad. She wanted to change dinner to tonight, and I said no, so she started yelling at me about your dad and Luke!" Lorelai explained, out of breath from all the screaming.

"Oh, Mom. Maybe I should come back home for tonight. We could hang out until you go to see Luke, I could even spend the night, skip my class tomorrow. I can stay as long as you want, it's a one time offer, so snatch up the chance while you have it," Rory offered.

"Are you sure? You'd do that?"

"For you? Of course. I'll be there in a little bit," Rory told Lorelai.

"I love you, sweets. See you soon."

"Love you too, Mom," Rory replied back. They hung up, and Lorelai, exhausted, waited chair for Rory's car to pull into her driveway.

Xx

Over an hour later, Rory pulled into the driveway, hoisted her bag out of the back seat and made her way up to the front door. She was reaching for the doorknob when it suddenly opened.

"Daughter!" Lorelai exclaimed. She pulled Rory in for a hug that knocked the bag out of her arms.

"Hi, Mom. Watch my bag. It's somewhere near your feet," Rory said. Lorelai let go of her and looked down. "There it is!" Rory bent down and grabbed her bag.

"What took you so long?" Lorelai asked. It was unusual for the drive from New Haven to Star's Hollow to take more than 40 minutes, even on a day with traffic.

"Logan."

"Oh. You didn't have to, uh, stop, for me," Lorelai replied awkwardly. Rory laughed.

"No, not that. I had to explain to him why I wouldn't be available tonight. And Paris was giving me a hard time. We were arguing over that popcorn maker. I wanted to bring it here, so we'd have popcorn, you know, when we watch movie after movie tomorrow. But she was going to watch movies with Doyle tonight, and she wanted it. So I went to the store and bought her a big box of microwave popcorn. She was pleased," Rory explained. Lorelai kissed her cheek.

"That's my girl," she said through giggles.

Rory tossed her stuff onto her bed and joined Lorelai back in the living room. Lorelai had herself wedged in the corner of the couch, a pillow in her lap. Rory took a seat next to her.

"So, what did you say to Grandma?" Rory asked.

"That I'm talking to Luke, and I didn't want her to plan my life for me, basically," Lorelai said. She suddenly realized something. "I told her I loved Luke." Lorelai looked at Rory. She was grinning ear to ear.

"I knew it! I knew it, I knew it!" Rory sang. Lorelai smiled with her. Something inside her clicked right then and there. She had been able to tell her mother that she was in love with a man she, Emily, hated. Lorelai looked back at Rory. "You know, Mom, tonight's going to be really good for you guys. I really mean it."

"Thanks. It's about time Luke and Lorelai returned, what do you think?" Lorelai asked playfully, knowing fully what Rory's answer would be.

"Well, do you miss him?"

"Painfully."

"How much do you think about him?"

"Are these serious questions?"

"Oh, come on. You know you want him," Rory said in a sing-song voice again.

"I can't believe you just sang that! What, are you seven again?" Lorelai asked.

"Perhaps. What time's he picking you up at?" Rory asked.

"He's not. I'm meeting him at the diner."

"Oh, alright. What time are you meeting him there at?" Rory asked again.

"Seven."

"So, 7:15?"

"You got it, dude," Lorelai joked, channeling her inner Michelle Tanner.

Rory glanced over at the clock and calmly said, "Its 7, Mom."

"What!? No it's not!" She jumped off the couch and peered over at the clock. "Oh my god! It's 7! I have to go! I haven't showered, my hair's a mess," Lorelai exclaimed.

"Mom! Calm down! You showered this morning, remember? Your hair looks fine. Just go put on a jacket and come back down," Rory reasoned. Lorelai relaxed when she looked in the mirror.

"This morning. Right. Okay, I'll go get my jacket. Purple or Blue? She asked

"Red," Rory replied.

"Red works too," she agreed. "I'll be right back down." Rory nodded as Lorelai went upstairs. Rory got up just as the phone rang. She picked it up.

"Hello?"

"Rory, its Luke. Listen, can you tell your mom that we're going to have to reschedule? Anna needed to drop April off for a few hours while she ran to a meeting out this way, and I can't just leave now. Tell her we'll do it another time."

Rory thought about it, weighing the options in her mind. She knew that if Luke and Lorelai didn't take this step now, that it would most likely never happen. "No, I'll come and take April to the town meeting tonight. The diner should be dead because of it, right? We can leave you two alone to talk there," Rory offered.

"That sounds great, actually. Thanks," Luke said.

"Sure. See you later." She hung the phone up just as Lorelai came back downstairs.

"I'm coming with you," Rory announced.

"For what?" Lorelai asked. Rory grabbed her jacket.

"April's there, and Luke was going to reschedule on you, so I offered to take her to the town meeting so the two of you can talk in the diner," Rory explained, as Lorelai's processed the change in plan. "Let's go."

"Thanks, Hun!" Lorelai exclaimed, giving Rory a hug.

"Anytime. We're going to be late, come on," Rory said. They left the house, Lorelai's arm over Rory's shoulders.

Xx

"Do you think they're here yet?" April asked Luke. They were sitting upstairs in the apartment waiting for Lorelai and Rory. Luke thought waiting upstairs would be better; he wouldn't want to seem too desperate.

"Probably not. We'll know when they're here," Luke replied. April looked at him, a puzzled look on her face.

"How?" She asked, and then paused. Luke smirked, and then suddenly he heard something from downstairs.

"Luuuuuuuke!"

April looked at her father, who sat smiling next to her.

"They're here, come on," he told her, stating the obvious. They got downstairs in record time. April was excited to see the girls, and she greeted both with warm welcomes. Excited to go out with Rory, she grabbed her hand and led her out the door. Rory waved good-bye over her shoulder to Luke and Lorelai, and the girls left the pair standing in the center of the empty diner.

"So, upstairs?" Luke asked after a moment. "There's coffee up there, and it's more comfortable then out here."

"Sure, that sounds great," Lorelai replied.

She followed him upstairs, to the small apartment where she had spent so much time in the past. As the door was opened and they stepped in, Lorelai noticed the changes. There was not as much brown as before, the place had been livened up by splashes of blue and other colors everywhere she looked.

"Wow, Luke. It's, uh, bright in here. You finally spiffed the place up?" Lorelai asked. She walked around the room, fingering the curtains and table cloth.

"Well, April picked most of it out. We put it all up when she stayed with me while Anna was in New Mexico," Luke explained. He showed Lorelai to the couch, where she sat down. He took a nearby chair. "So, I'm just going to cut to the chase, let's get to the reason we're up here: Us."

"Right, us," she said, taken aback by his bluntness. "Listen, Luke, I'm not really good at the whole 'talking when you're supposed to' thing. I'm better at talking when no one wants me to," Lorelai said, nervously, not quite where to start. To Luke, her eyes seemed to twinkle.

He let out a little chuckle. "I've noticed. But I'm not too good at this either, so we'll just start at the beginning."

"That sounds like a good a spot as any," she replied. "So, the beginning. Ah, the first time I thought something was going to happen between us. Remember when we were going to paint the diner?" Lorelai asked. Luke nodded. "And everyone was outside watching us through the windows, so we ended up kneeling behind the counter?" Luke nodded again. "I thought we were going to kiss there. Really, I did. And if I wasn't so nervous, I would have taken the first move," she said, the sincerity in her voice very clear to Luke.

"I wasn't sure if that was what you wanted. I mean, _I _wanted it, but I wasn't sure about you," Luke explained. It was true. It took all of his self-control not to take her right there on the floor that night. He remembered letting out a sigh of relief when she broke the tension by saying she better leave, and got up.

"We really missed out," she stated.

"Yeah, we did," Luke agreed again. This was good, the way started this conversation. With the good times before the _really_ good times. They stayed this way, discussing little moments at the diner, laughing and smiling over the memories they still held fondly, until Lorelai mentioned Stella.

"Do you remember that one night I called you to come over and look for Rory's baby chick that I lost?" Lorelai wondered.

"Of course. I broke your lamp," Luke said, in a very matter-of-fact manner.

"Right!" Lorelai exclaimed. "That was a great night."

"We had a lot of great nights," Luke said, stating the obvious.

"Yeah. Yeah, we did," she acknowledged sadly.

"The inn's test run, too. Best night of my life, hands down," Luke admitted, surprised by how much he reveling to Lorelai now, when they were as closed off to each other as he ever reviled during their time together.

"It's definitely up there."

"Our first kiss. I can still remember it all. Every second of it," he said, his mind starting to drift off towards memories of that night.

"Me too. It was great. Excellent, actually," Lorelai said, wistfully. "Everything was excellent. Our first date, excellent." Her voice got softer. "Our first time, excellent." Luke smiled and looked down at the floor.

"I never thought anything in my life could be better than that night. Any night, actually, that we spent together was amazing. I never imagined anything could make me as happy as those times with you did," Luke said, a slight sadness in his voice. He studied her face for a moment. "I can't believe that we'll never have that again, Lorelai. I just--I really wanted to be able to have those nights for the rest of my life," he said, solemnly.

Lorelai tensed and bit the inside of her lip. "I know." She lets out a small, defeated breath. "I did too." She, now, was looking down at the floor. "You were my heart, Luke. You were everything I could ever ask for. You were my best friend, the only person I could tell _everything_ to. You were the only person in my life that I could share my deepest, darkest secrets with. I couldn't tell Rory those things and Sookie" I just didn't feel comfortable discussing certain aspects of life with her."

"I felt the same. I mean, not that I would go talk to Rory or Sookie about anything in the first place, but you were the one I always went to, the only one I could go to."

Lorelai nodded knowingly. "I wish some things just never changed, you know?"

"I know."

Lorelai took a deep breath and decided to take a big leap. "Luke, I still love you. I'll always love you."

"I'll always love you too."

"You were my first _true_ love, you know," Lorelai admitted, quietly. "Chris was a fling, I think. Sure, I had his kid, but I never really loved him the way I loved you."

Luke would have doubted that fact at any previous point in their lives, but after her marriage came to an end, he began to understand that Lorelai really didn't love Chris as much as he thought she did. "I never loved Rachel, really, and I most definitely did _not_ love Anna, even close to the way I loved you. And Nicole—I don't think I ever loved her either, as wrong as that was by me."

"I really hated that you shut me out, Luke," Lorelai confessed. "You know, with April. I understood your intentions, and your nervousness, but you seemed to have forgotten that I was all in. You were all in. We were all in together, and by you not telling me about her you broke my heart. Really, you did. I loved you so much, and not being able to tell you how upset I was really, really hurt. I couldn't bring myself to tell you anything. You didn't tell me, and I just couldn't tell you. I hated that."

"I hated not being _able_ to tell you. I just needed time to myself with her. It broke _my _heart that I couldn't bring myself to tell you. I really wanted to, Lorelai. Please believe that. I tried telling you and I just couldn't." He sees her open her mouth to protest, but cuts her off. "I know there's no excuse anymore, but I never intended to keep her a secret from you."

"I do believe that. I do. It's just that we were in it for the long haul. We were getting _married_, Luke. _Married_. You're supposed to tell me things like that," Lorelai said.

"I know. I know I should have told you. I just needed time."

"Two months, Luke. Two months," Lorelai said softly. She didn't say a word more.

Luke swallowed hard and then stood up. The tension in the room was unbearable, and the silence that came after she spoke was even harder to breathe through. He took two steps and sat back down next to Lorelai on the couch.

"What are you doing?" She asked, confused.

"Nothing," He answered. They sat in silence for an undetermined amount of time. They looked around the room, at the floor, at the ceiling, anywhere but the face of the person who caused them so much pain, and who they caused so much pain towards. "Lorelai," Luke said, finally.

"Yeah?"

"Is this weird?" He asked.

"Uh, well, yeah, a little," She said, turning to finally look at him. He searched her eyes for anything to tell him what she was thinking; what she was feeling. He found nothing.

His voice got husky. "Lorelai, I need to do something, I just need to know if it's still here. So please, just hold still." She was about to open her mouth to say something when his mouth suddenly covered hers. The feeling of kissing Luke again was something that she never thought she would experience again. His tongue begged her for entrance, which she immediately granted. Tongues attacked each other and lips ran over lips until both were out of air. Lorelai pulled away.

"Oh my god," she said, almost silently, touching her fingertips to her lips. Her eyes were still closed, her voice timid. Luke placed his hand on her cheek, and for a second, she forgot the world. She forgot that they broke up. She forgot about everything that had happened to her in the past few weeks. All she could think about was his hand, his lips, her heart. She reveled in the feeling of pure content for a few moments until she was snapped back to reality. "Oh my god," she repeated, but this time more loudly, almost disgusted. "Oh, my, god."

"Don't say it like that," Luke pleaded. "What are you feeling? What are you thinking? Please, Lorelai, tell me."

"I—I have to go. I have to go." Luke bowed his head in silence as she stood and exited the apartment without another word.

Xx

The town meeting had ended, and Rory had decided to take April out for a little while longer to give Lorelai and Luke more time to talk.

"You like books, right. Luke's mentioned how smart you are," Rory asked April.

"Yeah, I love books," April answered. "Why do you ask?"

"We have a pretty good bookstore here in Star's Hollow. We have some time to kill, want to check it out?"

"Sure!" April exclaimed. The two girls made their way from the dance studio to Andrew's bookstore. The shop was empty, not to their surprise, except for the teenage cashier reading behind the counter.

"Have you read Moby Dick?" Rory asked April, picking up a copy and displaying it to her.

"I started it when I was 7, but never finished," April replied. Rory looked stunned.

"You tried to take on Moby Dick at 7? Impressive, I didn't give it my first attempt until 11â€ Rory admitted. April smiled and took the book from Rory's hands.

"I think I'll try it again. Maybe this time I'll get past page 53." Rory smiled along with her. Here she was, standing just two feet away from the little girl who was almost her step sister. She sensed so many similarities between the two of them. She wondered, for a moment, what it would have been like to have April has her sister, instead of GiGi, someone she could talk to and discuss literature and school... "Wait, Rory, I don't have any money on me. I'll have Mom take me back here sometime," April said, bringing Rory back to the real world.

"I'll pay for it. No problem," Rory offered.

"You're sure? Aren't you in college? Don't college students run low on money? My mom always said that she was dead broke in college."

Rory laughed. "I'm sure. Yes, I'm in college, but I can afford to buy a book, I promise" Rory said. She and April sat down in a couple of chairs at the back of the shop. Rory placed the book on a table. "Let's talk."

"About what?" April asked.

"Whatever you want," Rory replied. April didn't say anything. "April?"

"Why do you think Dad and Lorelai didn't get married?" She said quickly, all of a sudden. Rory was taken aback.

"Oh, wow. Um, I'm not sure exactly. It was a bunch of little things, I think," Rory replied nervously.

"It was me, wasn't it? I don't really remember exactly how it all happened, but Lorelai had to find out herself about me when she asked whose kid I was," April said. Rory bit her lip.

"It wasn't you, April, really. It was that, like you said, Luke didn't tell my mom about you. It had nothing to do with your existence. She couldn't ever have a problem with you, she has me. She'd be a hypocrite if she wasn't okay with Luke having a kid. It's just that leading up to finding out about you, my mom and Luke were having some communication problems. I really don't know exactly why. They just were at a point where everything was going wrong for them. I wasn't much help either. My mom and I weren't talking when they got engaged, and for a few months after that. They didn't set a wedding date at first, and then Luke postponed the wedding, and they just didn't know how to correctly talk about their problems with each other anymore." April listened intently as Rory explained.

"Good. I was thinking about it earlier and I was afraid it was me, and that Lorelai hated me for it," April admitted. Rory shook her head.

"No, no. Mom doesn't hate you at all. She really likes you. She helped out at your birthday party, remember?"

"I just figured she did that for Dad."

"No, of course not. Sure, she was helping Luke out, but she made that party one heck of a good time for you, didn't she?"

"Yeah," April's voice got quieter. "Do you think they'll get back together, Rory?"

"Only time can answer that," Rory answered. "But I kind of hope so, he makes her happy, and that's really all I want for her at this point."

"Me too. He really loves her. Every time I stay at his apartment, she comes up in one of our conversations. It might just be a silly little anecdote, but she's usually the main character of any funny story he tells. You can tell it hurts him, but more recently he's always mentioning something Lorelai told him, or something Lorelai did, or said. I think he misses her," April said. Rory silently agreed.

"What do you say we go ring up this book and take you back to the diner?"

"Sounds good. Thanks, again, for the book and everything," April said as Rory paid.

"Oh, you're welcome," Rory said as the teen cashier gave her the change back. They left the bookstore and began the walk back to Luke's.

"You know, Rory, it would have been really cool to have you as a step-sister. Really," April admitted. Rory smiled.

"It would have been great to have _you_ as a step-sister, April," Rory said. They walked back to the diner in silence. Lorelai was sitting at a table in the diner waiting for them when they entered. Luke was standing behind the counter, wiping down the surface with a paper towel. He looked relieved to see them, but not as relieved as Lorelai looked. Rory was confused by the scene that she and April came upon; it wasn't how she expected to find them.

"Well, I guess we better get going," Lorelai said quickly, standing up. She started for the door. Rory shot her a look. "Bye, Luke. April," She added. Rory still looked confused.

"What's going on?" she mouthed. Lorelai shooed her out of the diner.

"Hon, I don't know, a lot happened - we kissed," Lorelai said. Rory's mouth dropped.

"You _kissed_?" Rory repeated.

"Yeah," she replied, and Rory could tell she was upset with herself. "Oh, man. This night was supposed to just be talking, and getting reacquainted with each other, trying to get a friendship back here. This wasn't supposed to happen!" Lorelai exclaimed.

"Well, I think you guys got reacquainted," Rory said with a giggle. Lorelai slapped her arm.

"Rory!" Lorelai shrieked. "Can we just get home, please?"

"Sure. Let's just get home," Rory laughed. They walked the short distance back home, Rory constantly glancing over at Lorelai with a small giggle, Lorelai hanging her head down, and swatting her daughter when she poked fun at her. Lorelai tossed her purse and keys on the floor and kicked off her shoes, collapsing on the couch, as soon as she got into the house. Rory followed Lorelai over and sat beside her.

"So April and I had a little chat in the bookstore," Rory said, starting up the conversation.

"You went to the bookstore? God, no wonder it took you guys so long to get back and save me," Lorelai said.

"Well, I figured you would want to talk a little while longer, so we stopped at Andrew's and I bought her a book."

"That was nice of you."

"Yes, and you're trying to change the subject. I know it when I see it; I was taught by the best," Rory said. She put a finger to her lips when Lorelai started to say something.

"Fine. Uh, what did you talk about?" Lorelai asked, like she didn't know the answer that Rory was trying to get at.

"You. Luke. Why Luke and you didn't get married," Rory answered. "She said she thought it was her fault. I told her no, it wasn't her. She's ok now."

"Oh, make sure she knows. I'd feel terrible if she thought it was her fault. It's not," Lorelai said, honestly.

"She knows."

"Good," Lorelai said, relieved.

"She also asked me whether or not you and Luke were getting back together," Rory added.

"Oh, no," Lorelai said, shaking her head. "What did you tell her?" Lorelai asked.

"I said that only time can tell."

Lorelai sat and looked straight ahead of her. Part of her wanted to believe that she and Luke would get back together, get married, have a bunch of kids and live the most perfect life ever. Another part of her just wanted to get it over with. Just accept that what they had was gone. But the part of her that was pulling towards spending their lives together was inching ahead of the part of her that wanted to accept the breakup. The first part was definitely winning, and all of a sudden Lorelai burst into tears.

"I—I Lorelai muttered. "I want it, Rory. I want to be that woman that everyone hates because she has a perfect life. I want to be married to the love of my life, to Luke, and I want to raise a big family, and I want to live forever just knowing that he's home waiting for me. I'll never, ever, have that. I ruined _everything_. I had that option with Chris, but I ended it, it wasn't enough, it wasn't Luke."

"Mom, no. You didn't do anything. Yeah, everything got a little—a lot, messed up. But you could have worked it out, you and Luke. Together, everything _can_ be perfect eventually. As perfect as life can be,"ﾝ Rory said. She wiped a tear from Lorelai's cheek.

"But if I just would have spoken up. Told him I didn't want to postpone the wedding. Everything would have been different," she protests through a sob.

"Listen. It's not your fault. And it's not Luke's fault. It's both of you together. A gear came off track. It happens! You just have to cope. You both did this together, together you can figure it out," Rory said, trying to comfort her mother, whose tears were coming slower and slower now. Rory felt so much sympathy for her mother, but there was nothing she could really do. Lorelai needed to deal with this herself for once. "You know Mom; I should get back to Yale. There's an exam coming up I should really study for. I'm sorry. Are you going to be alright alone? I can call Sookie if you want, or maybe you should call Luke, tell him what you just told me," she offered.

Lorelai inhaled deeply and shook her head. "I'll be fine, Hon," she sniffed. She opened her arms, and Rory got the hint and leaned into her mother. Lorelai held Rory like a child, not wanting to let go. Finally, Rory kissed Lorelai's cheek and found her way out of the arms binding her. She stood up, grabbed her jacket and left the house, leaving Lorelai to fall asleep on the couch.

Xx

An hour later, Lorelai was awakened by a loud banging on the front door. "Go away!" she yelled groggily.

"Lorelai!"

She sat up. Was it? Could it be? She quickly unwound herself from the blanket that was atop her body and went to open the door. He stood there, in front of her. She reached out and touched his shoulder.

"You're real," she whispered.

"Of course I'm real. Why wouldn't I be real?" Luke asked.

"I thought—I thought maybe I was dreaming," Lorelai said, looking into his eyes. They were wet, evidence of tears still left on his face. Lorelai frowned. "You were crying."

"Yeah, well, don't tell anyone. I wouldn't want to ruin my image," Luke joked. "Can I come in?"

"Sure, sure," Lorelai muttered, opening the door wider so Luke could come in. He hung his green coat on coat rack, where it always used to go, and kicked off his boots next to her smaller shoes. "Sit?" Lorelai offered, leading him into the living room. She tossed the blanket off the couch and motioned for him to sit down next to her. "Where's April?"

He disregarded her question. "I'm sorry, Lorelai. I didn't mean to scare you away earlier."

"You didn't. I just was overtaken," Lorelai assured him. He nodded and looked around.

"So, how's the weather over here?" He asked. She grinned.

"Pretty much the same as it is in your neck of the woods," Lorelai answered. There was silence. "I miss you, Luke."

Luke stared at her for a while. "I miss you too, Lorelai. Every day." Silence again. "I need you," he said, his voice filled with emotion.

She looked at him, and he looked back. She bit the inside of her cheek as he got closer. Just like in the apartment hours earlier, his lips were on hers before she had time to sort out her feelings. His tongue ran over her bottom lip sensuously as she granted him access. Their tongues tangled in a dance of love as they each ran out of air.

"Upstairs?" Lorelai said.

"You sure? You're not going to regret it later?

"Absolutely not." Luke nodded and picked her up. She kissed her way from his jaw to the seam of his shirt as he carried her up the stairs and through the double doors into the bedroom they once shared. He dropped her down on the bed and tossed his shirt to the side. He leaned back down to kiss her as she reached to unbutton his jeans. She finally completed her task and he stepped out of them. They broke away while he climbed on top of her.

"Luke?" She said, her voice masked in desire.

"What?"

"Let's try to keep this somewhat slow, okay?" He nodded, unbuttoning her pants and pulling them over her hips and down her legs and he tossed them aside. His tongue explored the newly exposed skin as she freed herself of her shirt on her own. He then reached behind her to unclasp her bra. He let the pesky item of clothing fall to the ground before he began his ministrations on her breasts. His tongue worked at each nipple. She let out a deep moan. Luke kissed a path down her body to the top of her panties. "Please, Luke, it's been too long" she pleaded as he hooked his fingers in the waistband and pulled them down, leaving them on the side of the bed to join her pants and his shirt.

He ran his fingers between her legs to test her heat, slipping one, then two fingers inside her. He kept a steady rhythm, thrusting his fingers in and out of her. Her first orgasm built quickly, and she was sent over the edge in a matter of minutes.

She grabbed his head and brought it back down to her lips. Their kiss was slow, but passionate. He nibbled on her earlobe as she pulled his boxers down off his legs and moved her hands to cup him. He pushed her legs apart with his knee and positioned himself between them. They stared deep into each others eyes and interlocked their fingers before he eased himself slowly into her, testing the waters. His lips met hers again as he thrust in and out of her slowly, but surely.

Lorelai whispered, "I love you," in his ear, as she burst into a world of color. Everything around her began to spin, and she felt as if she were flying. It hadn't felt like this since their first time. Luke came with her, exploding deep inside her. He collapsed above her, covering her body completely with his. Lorelai snaked her arms around his back to hold him close.

She definitely wanted it, and she was going to have it. She would be the woman everyone hated, because she had the man she was desperately in love with, the perfect life. She bent her head up to kiss him softly on the lips as he rolled them over so she rested on top of him. Luke pulled out of her as she rolled off to lie next to him. It didn't last long, seconds later she was snuggled into the side of his body, her head resting on his chest.

"That was amazing. You're amazing," Luke said, kissing the top of her head. Lorelai closed her eyes.

Amazing. Everything from this point on would be amazing. "Luke, let's just take this slowly. Tonight wasn't slowly, obviously, but from here on, let's let it guide us to wherever we're supposed to go. Let's not force anything. Slow. Just take it slow." He nodded.

"Don't ever, _ever_, forget that I love you, Lorelai. Not for one second. You should never doubt my love again," Luke warned.

"Never, Luke. Never," Lorelai replied. And she meant it.


End file.
